Weekly District 30 Update – 2/14/25

State Senator Myron Dorn

Southeast Nebraska finally received its first significant snowfall on Wednesday, February 12th. Schools closed, events were cancelled and the legislature convened and held its hearings as usual.

Extended floor debate focused LB 241 this week. The bill would establish liability protections for private entities in the event of a cybersecurity data breach unless the breach was caused by willful, wanton, or gross negligence on the part of the company. Senator Bob Hallstrom, put the bill forward as a way to protect small businesses who are at risk of having to payout large settlements. Opponents argued this bill would not hold companies accountable in the event they are actually negligent with your personal information. I believe we need to protect our small companies from class action lawsuits. By adding the ‘gross negligence’ as a cause for action, places a higher burden on those wishing to sue. Companies can take many precautions but hackers are out there constantly working to breach the firewalls protecting data. After four hours of debate, the bill advanced to the second round of debate on a vote of 33 – 9.

Also on the agenda are two competing bills, one to keep daylight saving time year-round, LB 34 by Senator Megan Hunt of Omaha, and LB 302 by Senator Dave Murman, to abolish daylight saving time and use standard time year-round. Both bills were advanced by the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs committee on an 8 – 0 vote. If the on-line comments are any reflection of the unicameral, there were 32 comments supporting LB 34 and 32 comments supporting LB 304. However, if Nebraska did go with LB 34, there would have to be change in federal law allowing this or an order from the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, and at least three adjacent states to Nebraska would adopt the same standard. I would be supporting year round day light saving time.

We continue to move other not so controversial bills from General File (first round of debate) to Select File (second round). By next week, we will even have a few bills ready for final reading.

Committee hearings are tackling some big issues, many of which tend to be very controversial. The Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee on Friday the 7th heard over 10 hours of testimony on LB 89 by Senator Kathleen Kauth. The bill would restrict K-12 student participation in school sports to teams that correspond to their “biological sex”. K-12 public and private schools would have to designate bathrooms and lockers based on the bill’s definition of biological sex. The committee has not taken any action on the bill yet. If this bill makes it to the full Legislature for debate, I will be supporting the bill.

Senator Tom Brandt will introduce LB 317 to the Natural Resources Committee on February 13th. This bill would combine the Department of Natural Resources into the Department of Environment and Energy. The new agency would be renamed to the Department of Water, Energy and Environment. The bill was introduced on behalf of the Governor. This is an attempt to streamline and consolidate agencies that have similar functions and overlap environmental issues. A number of years ago the Department of Energy was placed within the Department of Environmental Quality. And now LB 317 merges these agencies even further. I would support this bill.

Lastly, on February 10th, the Education Committee heard LB 303 offered by Senator Jana Hughes of Seward. This bill is a rerun of LB 9 from the Special Session. I was a co-sponsor on LB 9 and am a co-sponsor of LB 303. The bill makes adjustments to the Tax Equity and Education Opportunities Scholarship Act (TEEOSA) which is the funding mechanism used to provide equalization aid to schools across the state. The bill would increase foundation aid from $1500 per formula student to $1590 per formula student; drops the maximum levy for schools for $1.05 to $1.02 per $100 of taxable valuation; creates a base levy adjustment; and creates a School Finance Reform Commission. The bill was well received and had support of both rural and urban schools. Senator Hughes worked with a small group of senators, both democrats and republicans to develop this bill. The committee has not taken action on the bill to date.

My contact information is mdorn@leg.ne.gov and 402-471-2620. As always, I appreciate hearing from you.

Weekly District 30 Update – 2-7-25

State Senator Myron Dorn

The Legislature is in full work mode with legislative bills being debated in the mornings in the Legislative Chamber. Afternoons have senators sitting in various committees, hearing public testimony on various issues.

 In these early days of session, General File floor debate consists mainly of relatively non-controversial and can be considered as clean-up bills or bills that are fairly straight forward. Some bills do create a bit of extended discussion.

 During floor debate this past week, senators debated LB 229 introduced by Senator Bob Hallstrom of Syracuse. The bill would define workers, who use Marketplace Network Platforms such as Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash, as independent contractors. These workers are already considered independent but the bill would codify this into state statute. These workers choose, if and when, and how long they want to work.  Opponents of the bill said companies who use this employment model for these workers don’t provide fair wages or benefits and think LB 229 does not help the employee. Another senator in opposition said this bill would prevent those workers from trying to organize a union and to work to better protect their rights. The bill was advanced to the next stage of debate with a vote of 33 in favor and 12 opposed. I supported this bill.

 The Government, Military and Veterans Affairs committee heard competing proposals on day light saving time. Senator Dave Murman introduced LB 302 to eliminate the observance of daylight-saving time when the same policy would be adopted by the neighboring states of Iowa, Kansas, South Dakota and Wyoming. and go to standard time. The state could make this option without any federal action.  On the opposite end of the spectrum, is LB 34 by Senator Megan Hunt whose bill would see daylight saving time stay year-round and would require three adjacent states to adopt the policy and the federal government would have to allow for permanent daylight-saving time. The committee has not taken action on either bill.

 LB 698 was heard by the Business and Labor Committee to seek narrower provisions of the ballot initiative passed in the November General Election.  The ballot initiative provides Nebraska employees, who work for a business with fewer than 20 employees, the ability to earn 40 hours of sick leave. A person who works for a company with more than 20 employees can earn 56 hours of paid sick leave. Senator Paul Strommen from Sidney, introduced this bill to provide for exemptions for several smaller employers. including businesses that hire temporary and seasonal agricultural workers, employees under 16, and businesses with fewer than 10 employees. The senator said he is not trying to undermine the vote of the people but wants to provide safe guards for smaller employers. Opponents stated the paid sick leave passed by the voters is a better business model. Another opponent said states with similar policies of paid sick leave showed increased business growth and minimal long-term costs to the business. The committee has not taken action on this bill.

Finally, on Thursday, February 6th, the Revenue committee heard hours of testimony on LB 509, introduced by Senator Tony Sorrentino of Elkhorn. This bill is basically a re-run of LB 753 in 2023, which would have allowed a dollar-for-dollar tax credit to individuals who donate money to private scholarship granting organizations. People organized after this bill’s passage to get the repeal of LB 753 placed on the 2024 ballot. The initiative petition received enough signatures and was going to be on the 2024 General Election ballot. In 2024 during the regular session Senator Linehan introduced LB 1402 and instead of the tax credit, she proposed a direct state appropriation to the State Treasurer who would establish a program to provide education scholarships to eligible students. Again, the people ran a petition to repeal LB 1402 and successfully gathered enough signatures to place the issue on the ballot. In November of 2024, voters across the state voted to repeal the bill by 57% in favor of repeal and 43% wanting to retain the bill. Testimony in support of the newly introduced LB 509 spoke of the benefits to students and the ability to choose a school. Opponents spoke about the disregard for the people’s vote and work to see this defeated. They also spoke about the damage this could do to public school funding, that private schools do not have to meet the same standards as public schools, and could be selective on which students they would take. I will not be supporting LB 509, first and foremost the voters were very clear on ‘choice’ regarding state funding for private schools.

The Unicameral website is  www.nebraskalegislature.gov. My contact information is mdorn@leg.ne.gov and 402-471-2620. As always, I appreciate hearing from you.

Weekly District 30 Update – 1-31-25

State Senator Myron Dorn

 As the month of January comes to a close, the Legislature is in full swing. Mornings for  senators begin with meetings and then we convene in the Chamber to begin discussion on bills which had their public hearing and the committees moved them on to the first round of debate, referred to as General File. Most of the bills coming forward are relatively non-controversial and do not require a great deal of debate. If there are concerns regarding the bill, this gives other senators the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the issue.

 In the afternoons, senators are in committee hearings. Every senator has a five day schedule of committees on which he or she serves. The Appropriations committee is a five day committee so this is the only Standing Committee on which I serve. Our committee has been going through the Governor’s proposed budget, we are hearing from our legislative fiscal analysts and reviewing each agency. Soon, we will hear from agencies directors and begin hearing appropriation bills seeking funding.

 Other committees are hearing issues referred to their jurisdictional subject area. On Wednesday, the Judiciary Committee heard six bills relating to controlled substances (LB 6), regulating Kratom (LB 230) a leaf that can increase a person’s energy, and hemp regulations, and a consumable hemp product act (LB 16). Hemp farming was made legal in 2019 and products derived from hemp could not contain more than 0.3% of THC in Delta 9 products. However, there are other products now being sold with higher levels that the 2019 did not address. Attorney General Mike Hilgers wants to see these products made illegal in LB 316. On the other side, Store owners who sell these products would rather see the products remain available with regulations on labeling, packaging and sales restrictions to minors. This hearing went from 1:30 to 9 pm. The Judiciary committee has the largest number of bills referred to it for hearings and also tends to have some of the most controversial issues.

 LB 645 has been generating much concern on the part of teachers. In 2013 the state made an agreement with the teachers’ union to contribute 2%, up from the previous 1% contribution, every year to the teachers’ retirement fund to reach 100% and the retirement is fully funded. LB 645 states that once the plan is at 100%, the state can relax its 2% contribution. An important part of the bill states that no changes can be implemented until an actuarial study is conducted to show that with those changes, the plan’s funding will continue to be healthy and sustainable. So, if the plan’s funding level drops and it needs the 2% contribution from the state, it will continue to receive full state support.

 LB 645 has not been set for hearing yet but I will certainly watch as this bill is discussed in the hearing. It is my understanding Senator Ballard, who introduced the bill on behalf of the Governor, is working with the Nebraska State Education Association to address their concerns.

 The Government, Military and Veterans Affairs committee heard testimony on LB 135, introduced by Senator Holdcroft of Bellevue. The bill would prohibit schools and educational service units from conducting special elections for a bond issue, property tax levy or exceeding a property tax levy limitation. The bill would require such questions to only be on regularly scheduled elections or on traditional election dates like the primary, general and municipal elections, since these elections tend to have a higher voter turnout.

 Concerns were raised by the opposition that this could increase the cost of the project by having to wait a year to two for those elections to come around. It could also impede a schools ability to keep pace with the needs of a district when there may be enrollment growth or building maintenance which may not align with the election calendar. The committee has not taken any action on this bill.

 Unicameral’s website at  www.nebraskalegislature.gov. My contact information is mdorn@leg.ne.gov and 402-471-2620. As always, I appreciate hearing from you.

The Legislature is well and truly under way with the introduction of 715 legislative bills, and 27 resolutions. All bills will receive a public hearing and those hearings began on Wednesday, January 22 and will run through March 28th. Resolutions that end with a CA (constitutional amendment) also will receive a public hearing. Other resolutions tend to be congratulatory in nature and can be introduced throughout the session.

Public hearings are a chance for citizens to let senators know how they feel about the issues. A person can testify in person or submit on-line comments through the legislative portal. Go to the bill of interest and if the public hearing date is set, there will be a tab to enter public comments.

I have personally introduced 11 bills and two constitutional amendments. My bills mainly focus on appropriations, 3 of which are for improved provider rates relating to developmental disabilities, mental health and assisted living facilities, LB 54, 55, and 57 respectively. Another bill, LB 86 seeking funding is to help NRD’s with watershed operation, maintenance or repair. LB 88 is a bill that will help fund Mainstreet revitalization and economic growth. 

LB 87 is a bill that I was asked to introduce on behalf of the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired. The commission developed and implemented a pilot program in Omaha where deaf/blind individuals were provided a Support Services Provider. This provider could help with daily living activities such as help with the mail, driving the person to medical appointments etc. The program was a success and the commission would like to work on expanding this program to more people who suffer vision loss or hearing issues. The public hearing for this bill will be Friday, January 31st before the Health and Human Services Committee.

I introduced LB 56 to require medical facilities or mortuaries to do a blood draw on a deceased person who died as a result of a motor vehicle accident. I am working with the groups to reach a compromise. I also have LB 576 to allow the Public Service Commission to consider a rate increase on cell-phones if necessary to help fund 911 systems across the state. The other three remaining bills I consider to be clean-up or clarification language one for Performance Audit (B 228), one pertaining to the Cash Reserve Fund, LB 494, and LB 577 for Health and Human Services relating to clarify pharmacy technicians and their supervision.

The last two issues I introduced were LR 7CA that would ask voters to consider increasing senators’ salaries from the current $12,000 a year to $30,000 a year. The last increase that was passed was in 1988. Had an inflationary factor been in place, the salary would be over the proposed amount. The issue first has to be passed by the Legislature and then voted on by the people in 2026. I introduced this amendment because I would not benefit from a pay increase since my term of office ends in 2026. 

The other constitutional amendment I introduced is LR 24CA. This amendment, if adopted by the people, would return Nebraska to a winner-take-all state for the electoral college. Senator Loran Lippincott has a bill for winner-take-all that would change the statute. His bill will be decided by the legislature. But the only way to have the people vote on the issue is by introducing a constitutional amendment. The hearing for these two resolutions is next Thursday before the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee. Both bills will be heard simultaneously. The public comment tab is active and people can submit comments on both issues.

I have served on the Appropriations Committee for the last six years and will serve there for my remaining two years. We have started the process of reviewing over 70 state agency budget requests with the input of our legislative fiscal analysts. This is the start of the appropriations process to get the proposed budget to the floor by legislative day 70 for approval and discussion by all 49 state senators.

The complete budget can be found at a link on the Unicameral’s website at  www.nebraskalegislature.gov. My contact information is mdorn@leg.ne.gov and 402-471-2620. As always, I appreciate hearing from you.

The 109th Legislative Session, First Session, began its work on January 8th of 2025. Seventeen new members were sworn into office, 1 returning senator, Senator Dan Quick, had previously served a four-year term.

The first day of the two-year legislative cycle begins with the election of all leadership positions. Senator John Arch of Omaha was re-elected to be the Speaker of the Legislature. He is responsible for setting out the daily agenda for floor discussions on bills, resolutions, and oftentimes works with all senators to try to reach resolution when major issues hit an impasse.

There are 14 Standing Committees which hear the lion’s share of the bills. Out of those 14 standing committees, 4 chairs were reelected to their committees: Senator Clements to Appropriations; Senator Murman to Education; Senator Moser to Transportation and Telecommunication; and Senator McKinney to Urban Affairs. The remaining 10 chairmanships went to senators who have not been a chair before and most with only two years in the legislature.

We have 10 days to introduce new legislation, the last day to introduce bills is January 22nd. Committee hearings start January 21st. People can submit on-line written comments for bills to be made part of the official record. People can go to Nebraskalegislature.gov and once the bill is set for a hearing, people enter the bill number. A tab will be available “Submit Comments Online for LBXXX”  The deadline to submit comments is by 8am the morning of the hearing.

This year, senators cannot introduce more than 20 bills. In the past few years, some senators have introduced 40-60 personal bills. I am trying to keep my total down to 10 or 12 bills and currently have 8 bills and one constitutional amendment.

LR 7CA is a proposal to increase state senators’ salaries from the current $12,000 a year to $30,000 a year. The last time senators’ salaries were increased was 1988. This issue has gone before the voters a few times and has failed. If the resolution moves through the legislature and is successful, the issue would be placed on the 2026 ballot. If an inflation factor would be applied to the $12,000 salary, the current pay would be over $30,000, again, just with an inflation factor. A senator does not work only during the 60 or 90 day session. It is a year round endeavor and one we all gladly do but it does place a financial burden on us and our families. I attend community events, meet with various groups and organizations, and attend interim hearings. I also have meetings with constituents to work on legislation. I am fortunate that I am semi-retired and have a bit more time to devote to my legislative work but many senators have to hold down full-time jobs when we are not in session. I in no way will benefit from any pay increase since I will end my second term in 2026. I am doing this for future candidates who may see the pay as a deterrent. Consider this, Douglas County Commissions make $58,356, Lincoln City Council makes $24,000. LR7CA falls well below the average of these two salary ranges. Nebraska senators should still want to serve primarily for the betterment of the state but not at the cost to the financial security of their families. I think this proposal is reasonable.

I have a new Administrative Assistant, Cooper Morgan, who joined my staff in December. He is learning how my office works and is doing a great job. Barb Dorn had been my Administrative Assistant for six years and had the opportunity to become a committee clerk for two committees. I want to thank her for her years of service to me and to the people of District 30. She will be missed.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns about state agencies, please feel free to send and email or call my office. We will do what we can to help answer your questions or address your concerns.

Contact me at mdorn@leg.ne.gov, call 402-471-2620 and check the website:  www.nebraskalegislature.gov

Thank you!

Thank you for visiting my website. It is an honor to represent the people of the 30th legislative district in the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature.

You’ll find my contact information on the right side of this page, as well as a list of the bills I’ve introduced this session and the committees on which I serve. Please feel free to contact me and my staff about proposed legislation or any other issues you would like to address.

Sincerely,
Sen. Myron Dorn